Hu calls for joint efforts to promote growth, financial stability

Chinese President Hu Jintao on Thursday urged the world's major economies to work together to promote growth and financial stability. "It is imperative that we stand on a higher plane, transcend differences on specific issues, move beyond short-term considerations, and jointly seek ways to overcome the crisis and sustain development," Hu told the Group of 20 (G20) summit here. "At this critical moment, the G20 must work to address the key problems, boost market confidence, defuse risks and meet challenges and promote global economic growth and financial stability," said Hu. As the premier forum for international economic cooperation, the G20 must continue to demonstrate the spirit of standing together in times of adversity and pursuing win-win cooperation, he said. The Chinese president said "the current world economic situation deserves our high attention," cautioning the global recovery is fraught with instability and uncertainty and faces growing risks and challenges. Some major economies are experiencing economic slowdown and some countries are facing acute sovereign debt problems, said Hu. He also cited volatility in the international financial markets, and high inflationary pressure in emerging markets. Hu put forward a five-point proposal on what G20 nations need to do to tide over the crisis. First, the countries should ensure growth while paying attention to balance. Given the serious risks facing the global economy and continued market volatility, ensuring growth and promoting stability should be the top priority, he said. "We should introduce new and strong measures to ensure that fiscal and monetary policies are fully implemented and that funding is channeled into the real economy to boost production and employment." Second, the G20 nations should strengthen unity and send a strong signal to the world as there is widespread panic and acute lack of confidence in the markets, said Hu. He urged G20 members to strengthen consultation and coordination, tackle sovereign debt risks, regulate cross-border capital flow, put the fluctuation of commodity prices under control, mitigate global inflationary pressure and make sure that the economic policies pursued by various countries do not offset each other. Third, global economic governance should be improved through reform, Hu said. The international financial crisis has highlighted the deficiencies in the global economic governance system, said Hu. "Major efforts should be made to reform and improve the international monetary system, international trading system and commodity pricing mechanism," said the Chinese president.